


Together Again, Like the Beginning

by smallcroissant



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-23
Updated: 2015-03-02
Packaged: 2018-03-14 16:47:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3418184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smallcroissant/pseuds/smallcroissant
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of little fics for all of your Chulu needs!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. And So It Begins

It’s only on the ride over to Pavel’s house that Hikaru realises that this is their first, official date ever.  
Like, ever.  
And he knows he shouldn’t feel scared, but he does. The thought of disappointing Pavel feels like a beehive is stuck in his stomach. He’s only ever wanted to make him happy, even when they were just friends, and he’s always felt like Pavel’s first date (because he knows he hasn’t ever had one) should be special.  
Maybe he feels like he isn’t capable of giving all of this to him or maybe he’s just over thinking, but by the time he’s talked himself down from the ledge, he’s parked on the street in front of Pavel’s complex. This isn’t a dream at all.  
Pavel lives in a big three-story brick building—has for as long as Hikaru has known him. It’s a communal living situation he got himself into when he first moved to San Francisco, with other people his age all with language barriers. He can tell that Pavel really likes it there, and has even made friends that he spends time with on occasion. Hikaru has never been inside the place, but he’s driven Pavel home enough to know where it is. Carefully, he gets out of his car and shuts the door, taking a deep breath before walking up the driveway. As he walks, he nervously buttons the final two buttons of his jacket.  
He smiles like a fool when he sees Pavel pressed against the glass of the window in what appears to be the main living room, anxiously twirling a lock of his hair. He gives a shy wave and a noticeable chuckle, as he strides the rest of the way up to the front door. Pavel has the door thrown open before Hikaru can even glance up from the floor.  
They don’t exactly say hi at first, or in so many words—instead, they envelope each other in a tight hug that lasts for just a moment, before Pavel pulls away, saying “I’m glad we could do this today, Hikaru. I have been looking forward to it for a long time, yes.”  
Then, Hikaru is beckoned passed the threshold of the door and into the large foyer of the house. It’s sparsely decorated, with a marble floor and high ceiling. To his left, a large coatrack with multiple dark jackets takes up space. Several shoes sit under it, all worn out and too big to be Pavel’s size. He feels almost disconnected from his body standing there, watching Pavel spin around looking for something.  
“Yeah, well…me too, I mean.” Hikaru mumbles out, feeling like an absolute idiot. “I’ve been looking forward to this all week, and…and I really hope you like me…er, I mean, the date. I hope you like this date, yeah.”  
Pavel’s smile makes it up all the way to his eyes. “I’m certain I will. 100%. But we should get going now? The movie starts at—“  
“7:15,” Hikaru spurts out, taking any opportunity he gets to avoid sounding like he’s a stuttering mess. “I thought that maybe we could grab some dinner after or something, though…If you’d like that?”  
“That sounds…wonderful.” He replies, all smiles and sparkles and sunlight. “Just…let me grab the jacket, and—" He reaches over to the coatrack and removes a simple black coat with buttons down the front. He leaves it draped over his left arm, as he offers up his right hand for Sulu to hold on to. "—and I should be fit to go! Ready?”  
Of course, Hikaru clasps his hand to Pavel’s in an automatic response, feeling better with newfound warmth on his palm. He smiles too, and nods before he can even think of a reply. Pavel is so beautiful standing next to him, insecure and questioning just like he is, and Sulu just has to stop and appreciate it now and forever.  
Carefully, he replies with an “I was born ready,” and if that’s not the truest thing he’s ever said, then he’d be lying.


	2. An Interesting Game of Hide and Seek

“Quick, quick! We have to hide!” Pavel whispered excitedly, as he pulled Hikaru along with him through the hallway.   
Scurrying feet could be heard from all levels of the fairly large house, as 14 kids scrambled to find the perfect hiding place. Pavel seemed so sure that he knew exactly where that place should be, and Hikaru wasn’t about to go off without him. The farther they ventured into the tight corridors of the century-old building, the more Hikaru felt the excitement that his partner did. It didn’t matter that he was only along for the ride on this impromptu game of hide-and-seek. All that really made a difference was the fact that he was right where he wanted to be—with his new and wonderful boyfriend, who evidently, had a huge childish side.   
“We’ve only got fifteen more seconds, Hikaru! Come on!” Pavel urged, picking up the pace as they scampered down to a large, paned window with a distant view of Angel Island. To their left was a closet door, and to their right was the stairwell that they had no doubt been down before. It seemed that there was really only one option.  
Pavel’s eyes flashed with brilliance as he read Hikaru’s expression. “You think the coat closet would be a good enough place?”   
“I don’t see why not.” He responded, reaching out to grab the knob. As the door was flung open, Pavel scurried in and took a seat on the floor amongst heavy winter coats, making room for Hikaru. The door was shut quietly behind him, in an attempt to not give their place away. The little room was plunged in complete darkness.   
“Pav?” Hikaru whispered, sticking his hands out in front of him in a vain attempt to get his bearings. Slowly, he crouched to the ground, not wanting to hit his head if the ceiling got lower. “Pav, where are you exactly?”   
“Shh!” Came his only reply, followed by a short giggle. No other words needed to be said to understand his challenge. Come find me, why don’t you?  
“You little shit—“Hikaru mumbled, making an attempt to keep his voice low. There was no doubt that Shmuel, one of Pavel’s housemates who was chosen to be the first seeker, was officially on his hunt to find the others. “—don’t make me turn on the light!”  
“No!” Pavel hissed. “That will give us away, surely!”   
“Then just, reach out your hand or something—"  
Abruptly, he was pulled down by Pavel’s strong grip. He was momentarily caught off guard by it, but made it a point to not yelp out. Much to his surprise, he did not land on the hard floor, nor snag himself on any of the heavy-duty coats that smelt of foreign snow and San Francisco breezes. He was almost certain that Pavel had pulled him into his lap, and moments later, that thought was confirmed when he felt arms go around his middle section. A pressure on his shoulder meant that Pavel had laid his head down on it.   
A small smirk danced across his face, even if no one was there to see it in the dark. If Pavel wasn’t the cutest thing in the world, he didn’t know what was. Carefully, he maneuvered himself around so that he could be facing him, making it more like a cuddle and less like a one-sided bear hug. He felt both their breaths hitch in anticipation, as he brought their noses closer.   
“I love how competitive you get, Pavel. Who knew you had it in you.” He whispered, barely audible.  
“Shh! He could be right outside the door—"   
“I think it’s really cute. Hiding in closets never seemed so romantic until today.” He could almost feel Pavel’s blush from the heat it radiated.   
“I’ll make you quiet if you don’t stop talking—"  
Hikaru just talked over him. “We’re like two teenagers—"  
But before he could finish his full thought, Pavel’s hands were on his cheeks, and their lips were connected in a painful, desperate kiss. It lasted not long enough for either of their liking, but it got the point across that Pavel was trying to convey. When he pulled away, out of breath and nervous, Hikaru was left dumbfounded. This was their first kiss ever, nestled between other people’s jackets in the dark.   
And they both wouldn’t have it any other way.   
“—And, GOTCHA!” Shmuel screamed, as he flew the closet door open. Light flooded in from all angles, momentarily blinding the two love birds inside. Pavel had yet to take his hands off of Hikaru’s face, and neither of them had made an effort to untangle from the other.   
“Uh…” All of a sudden, Shmuel’s victory drained from his face as his nervousness set in. It was evident that he was trying his hardest to find the right words in English to respond to this situation, but was coming up short. He dropped his hands from the door frame and stood in the middle of the threshold, sweating and panting.   
Hikaru would have assumed Pavel would’ve jumped in already to alleviate the tension by now. What he hadn’t expected was for him to simply ask…  
“Well, were we the first ones to be found, or what?”


	3. This Works Best

“Well, if we’re going to watch a movie, we should do it now and get it out of the way,” Sulu grumbled, standing up from his seat on the couch. “I mean, you’ve got to go back and study for that exam, so we only have so much time…”  
Pavel noticeably rolled his eyes and made it a point to flop into his seat smack dab in the middle of the sofa. “Me? Study? Hikaru, I’ll be fine. Trust me; there are harder things in this world than a simple theoretical physics exam….Like, choosing which movie to watch! Sit, and let’s forget, or however that saying goes.”  
Hikaru didn’t know what saying he was talking about, nor did he really feel comfortable with Pavel’s flippant attitude to school work. But being easily defiant with his boyfriend was not one of his strong suits. He decided to just bring it up again after their movie. “You have literally thousands of choices at your fingertips, babe. You can’t tell me it’s difficult to come up with one choice, can you?” Taking a seat closest to Pavel, Hikaru averted his attention toward the flickering screen.  
“If I pick one, you might not like it. We have no choice but to decide together.” And damn his manipulative little soul—Pavel knew that the easiest way to get Hikaru to agree with him was to bat his lashes and lay on his accent thick. Already, he was beginning to feel the tightness of his trap swallowing him whole.  
“Alright, alright. You have a point,” He replied, looking down to Pavel’s feet which had found a place in his lap unexpectedly. “What kind of movies do you like to watch?”  
“Hmm…,” Pavel gave a reply, flicking carelessly through the on-demand collection of films. “What about…a love story? Something nice—to set the mood?” A flirtatious smile flickered on his playful lips. “Would you like that?”  
Hikaru didn’t have any complaints. “Yeah, sure. I don’t see why not?”  
All it took was a bit further searching into the digital library before Chekov seemed to have found the ideal pick. “Aha! What about this? It is, uh, how do you say…a timeless classic, no?”  
Now, maybe Hikaru wasn’t exactly caught up on his cinematography, because “Gone with the Wind” wasn’t resonating clearly in his mind as something he had ever seen or heard of. “It’s lovely, Pav. Whatever makes you happy.”  
Elated, Pavel pressed play and curled up closer to his boyfriend.  
By the time the ‘Intermission’ screen flashed brightly on the television, Hikaru had realised exactly what Pavel’s motivation behind choosing it was.  
“You little shit…you only picked this because it’s like, the longest movie in existence and—“  
“—and you can’t blame me for wanting to ignore my studies and spend quality time with you, can you?” came Pavel’s snarky retort, as he leaned in for a gentle kiss.  
Momentarily blinded by Chekov’s cunning capabilities, Hikaru stumbled out a breathy “No…I guess I really can’t.”

**Author's Note:**

> Title comes from the song "Barely Legal" by the Strokes  
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
